Their Last Hope
by AnadoraBlack
Summary: [Sequel to Young and Free] [Spoilers for The Last Jedi inside] Luke Skywalker and his daughter have been found. But contrarily to the Resistance's hopes, he refuses to train Rey and Cas to the ways of the Force. And the First Order's increasing threat forces General Organa to take some drastic measures to ensure the rebellion's survival... [Poe/OC]
1. The Skywalkers

_A/N: Hello everyone and welcome to this new instalment of my long-run saga, By the Moons! This particular story is a _sequel _to **Young and Free** , which I advise you to read before getting head-first into this part. There are also some mentions of characters that were introduced in the first two trilogies, such as Tani Kenobi and later, Kali Nabié. You won't necessarily be lost concerning them, as I reinstate their identities._

 _I really do hope you will appreciate this story, don't hesitate to give your opinion, good or bad, by reviewing! I only have to tell you that the first chapters are fixing continuity errors I made concerning The Force Awakens. Don't be surprised. :)_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **1\. The Skywalkers**

* * *

Niobé Skywalker was taller than both her parents, with long and flowing strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes that reminded Cas of Tani's. There were definite Kenobi features in her face, but also the Skywalker demeanour, certainly due to the fact that she had basically lived alone with her father for fifteen years.

Cas was staring at the older woman – seven years was quite the difference – and vaguely remembered her as a teenager in the Temple. She was studious and disciplined, everything that Cas – and Ben Solo – hadn't been. She remembered looking upon Niobé with envy, something that her Master had always tried to mute.

Now, as Niobé was reuniting with her family – first her mother and now her Aunt Leia – Cas felt equally as envious as she had then.

Rey, who had up until then stood apart from the group, smiled kindly at her, and Cas tried to direct one of her own smiles to the young girl.

Tani, upon seeing her still standing there, gestured for her to join her little bubble, and Cas' steps faltered as she saw the look in Master Luke's eyes. Severe, cold. Unforgiving.

"Luke, Niobé, this is Cas Andé. My Padawan and adopted daughter. Cas, these are my husband, Luke, and daughter, Niobé."

Cas tried – and failed – to look unphased by all this, and said in a shaky voice, "I remember them."

Niobé smiled at her, but there was something in that smile that was cautious, and probably followed the trail of thought of her father, who by then openly glared at her. "No! No, Tani, I refuse! This girl will _not_ be trained!"

Tani's blue eyes widened and she stared in awe at her estranged husband. "What do you mean 'she won't be trained'? Have I asked that of you?"

"I know it's what you wish! For me to train this… _girl_ -" he gestured sharply at Rey beside them, who flinched back in hurt, "-and _her_ -" another sharp gestured towards Cas this time, "but it will not be! I refuse!" He turned away, taking Niobé with him, and his daughter looked apologetically at Tani before she followed him out of the room.

Cas released the breath she had been holding, and stared at the door that had just slid close. Leia then sighed and shook her head. "Well… It seems my brother has not lost his temper in all these years…"

Tani shook her head in response, and followed Luke and Niobé out, leaving Cas, Rey, and Leia, alone in the com room.

Rey was shaking from head to toe, and Leia, upon seeing this, went to embrace her, gently murmuring "Don't worry, he'll change his mind" while staring at Cas to let her know she was conveying the same message.

Cas merely left the room the same way her mother had. Without a word or a look back.

* * *

She wandered along the halls of the base until she found Poe and Finn in the hangar. Both were deep in conversation, and if their regular pointing at the X-Wings behind them was any clue, they were talking about flying.

She tried – and failed again – to look her normal flirtatious self when both men noticed her, but Poe furrowed his brow immediately, and came to stand by her.

"Is something wrong?"

She shrugged. "My mother's family is even weirder than what I had expected, that's all…"

He looked about to ask her more, but then his dark eyes settled upon something, or someone, behind Cas, and a brilliant grin appeared on his lips. " _Ni!_ " he exclaimed before getting pass Cas.

* * *

She followed his gaze and saw him hurry to join Niobé, who had appeared in the hangar. She sported another grin to match his own, and a pang of deep hurt and jealousy settled in her stomach. Niobé Skywalker had obviously been close to Poe Dameron once upon a time.

They embraced tightly, Poe making Niobé twirl in the air as she laughed for the first time since landing on D'Qar. Cas felt her hands closing into fists, and she was very close to leaving the room again when Poe took Niobé by the hand and lead her to where she and Finn were standing.

"Ni, I think you know Cas already," one polite nod headed her way, "and this is my friend Finn."

Said Finn smiled widely and outstretched a hand, but Niobé took a sharp pace back, eyes flashing in fear and something else as she outstretched her own hand, though not to shake Finn's. The former Stormtrooper gasped and placed his hands at his throat, looking at Poe for help.

"Ni! _Stop_ , he's a friend!"

She hissed, pushing him back. "He's a _traitor_."

"A traitor to the First Order, perhaps," Poe said, still trying to push her arm back down. "He defected. He _was_ a Trooper, but now he's one of _us_."

Finn was turning an odd shade of purple, and Cas felt herself instinctively try to push against Niobé's power, feeling the strength of it that was far too powerful for her own. Her eyes widened when she realised she was doing it, as she had never been able to do much before, but it was enough to distract the crazy Skywalker, who dropped her hand. Finn flew back a few meters before dropping unconscious to the ground.

Poe, unlike what Cas would have thought, did not hurry to his fallen friend's side, but hugged Niobé tightly, placing her head on his shoulder at the same time as he silently asked Cas to check on their companion.

She launched him a severe gaze but went by Finn's side anyway. BB-8, who had been happily bleeping nearby with R2-D2, came by her and bleeped a question.

"He's breathing, but barely," Cas whispered. She did not look at Poe, angry as she was of his and Niobé's behaviour, and looked at the droid. "Go and fetch a medic for me BB." He bleeped once and rolled out of her sight.

"It's alright Ni, it wasn't your fault…"

Once Cas heard those words, she felt a bubble of anger rise in her veins and she stood, turning to face the still entangled couple. "And _whose_ fault was it then? Whose fault was it that Finn is now half-dead?"

Niobé raised her head from Poe's shoulder, eyes red and filled with tears. She looked eerily like her mother like this. "I am sorry. I…I saw it again… That night…"

Something in the woman's tone made Cas understand what she was referring to. Kylo Ren had come to the Temple with Troopers that fateful night, and the white-clad bastards had had an equal hand in the novices' deaths as he had.

Still, she hissed "Don't get near him again" before the medic hurried inside with BB-8 in tow. She glared at Poe, who looked surprised at her vehemence, and followed Finn's stretcher out.

Seething.


	2. One braid that changes everything

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **2\. One braid that changes everything**

* * *

Cas spent one of the worst evenings of her life that day. In retrospective, as she couldn't remember much of the night the Jedi Temple had been obliterated, it probably was _the_ worst.

One could argue that it wasn't so bad. She had been invited to an informal dinner hosted by Leia for the return of her twin-brother and his daughter. Were invited only the closest people to the Skywalkers: Tani and Leia herself, obviously; Cas; Sehr – who looked like he'd have preferred reading a Sith anthology rather than being there – Chewbacca; Rey; Lieutenant Connix, and Poe. The last two looked like fishes out of water, but Cas expected that they had known Luke Skywalker before he went into hiding, for they were both obviously intimate with Niobé, who they had been seated next to. In Poe's case, one might even wonder if they had not been communicating for the past fifteen years, for it sounded like they hadn't been apart one second.

The "Finn incident", as Cas had decided to call it, had not been mentioned by anyone present, and Tani herself had told her adoptive daughter that it was understandable that Niobé, having only had her father for company all that time, had acted so violently when meeting someone who reminded her of a traumatic episode in her life. Cas was not convinced.

She had seen to Finn's good treatment herself, bringing him to the infirmary and checking with the medics if any permanent damage could be expected after such a long time suffocating. They had been cautious, but hopeful. Finn should spend a few days, maybe a week, in a bacta suit, and he'd be in ship-shape. Rey had hurried to her friend's side as soon as she heard, and for the rest of the afternoon, Cas and her surveyed the dark-skinned soldier in silence.

* * *

Cas had decided, therefore, that she didn't like the Skywalker girl. So she spent the majority of that dinner glaring at Niobé's profile as she talked and laughed with Poe. Something angry and powerful was settling in Cas' stomach, and she didn't like the feel of it at all.

" _You are jealous, my dear,_ " came the voice inside her head after a particularly nasty pang of anger settled in her heart.

Cas looked around, trying to find whose voice it was, for it hadn't been Tani's. She was also slightly scared to have been open in such a way that someone had managed to reach inside her thoughts without her noticing. She was surprised to see General Organa staring at her with a small smile.

Cas knew how such conversations worked. In theory. She tried " _Jealous of whom?_ " and it apparently reached its destination.

Leia smiled wider still. " _I don't think there is anything other than brotherly love and respect between Poe and Niobé. They have the same age, you know. They were each other's playmate._ " She raised her glass at her, and Cas ignored the loud chuckle of Poe two chairs down from her.

" _I'm not jealous. To be jealous, you need to feel things. I don't feel things for men like Poe. Ever._ "

She left the table then, unsettled by this new string of developments. She had conversed with Leia Organa through means of a Force-bond she ignored was there in the first place; had apparently mastered the theory of mental conversations quite quickly despite her being unable to do anything Jedi-related for more than a decade; and was jealous of her somewhat-sister.

She liked none of those odds.

* * *

Excusing herself from a 'family dinner' asked for subtlety and a good amount of lying. Both were Cas' speciality, and she had mastered the art of lying to her mother's face quite convincingly over the years. Not that Tani would have tried to see through her words anyway, as she was entranced by her husband's every move. It was sickening almost, especially since Master Skywalker himself didn't seem to be overly happy at being reunited with his beloved.

So Cas just pretexted that she was going to check on Finn, at which point Rey also stood and offered to join her. Cas accepted without issue, for she liked the younger girl and anyway, she was going to check on Finn eventually.

"That was one of the strangest experiences of my life," Rey said a few moments after they'd left the table.

Cas looked at her and chuckled darkly. "Yes, definitely."

Rey remained silent for another turn in the base's many corridors, then asked in a small and almost shy voice, "Do you think Master Skywalker will agree to train us?" and Cas had to stop in her tracks.

Her Force-sensitivity told her that Rey was afraid of being rejected. It was nothing new, since that feeling had appeared when they had both met each other for the first time also. So she shrugged and tried a hopeful smile. "I'm sure my mother – I mean, Master Kenobi, will be able to convince him."

Rey smiled, and they continued they trek towards the infirmary.

* * *

After a night spent reminiscing some of Cas' worst nightmares – including a night of red buzzing and fire eating at a Temple – she woke to the gentle caress of her mother's hand in her hair.

She started until she noticed Tani sitting on the edge of the bed and smiling down at her the way she had done when she was still a little frightened girl.

"Ma?" Cas asked in a muffled voice before shaking the sleep off her features. "Is something wrong?"

Tani shook her head, but the look in her eyes was nothing good. It was as if she was trying to memorize Cas' face, as if…they'd soon be apart.

The realisation made Cas sit up and gasp. "You are leaving!"

Tani didn't ask how she had guessed, and also didn't try to deny it. "Luke wants to go back to his world. He wants Niobé and I to go back with him. To be a family again." Cas started feeling the dread of what was to follow wave over her, but her mother soothed her fear with a gentle stroke on her cheek. "Yes, you have guessed right. He does not want to train either you or Rey. He vehemently refused, and we spent the entire night arguing over it. He will not be bulged. But I don't mind."

"You-" Cas started, anger seeping over her now. The woman she had called mother didn't mind leaving her behind to go play family?

"Cas," Tani interrupted her trail of thoughts, "I don't mind because I know you are destined to stay here. You have a bigger part to play in the Resistance than I thought, but I saw it… I saw you. And you will be a thousand times more useful here than on a pitiful island somewhere no one knows about."

Cas gently pushed past her mother and stood, wrapping a robe over her thin nightshift. She was trying to fathom all that had just been said. Her mother was going to leave her, but she had seen that she was meant to be there, and that she'd be useful? That she'd be…a hero?

"What are you intending to do with me?" she finally asked, not daring to look back at Tani.

"Leia," she simply said, and waited until Cas looked at her quizzically to carry on with her plan. "Leia will teach you all you need to know." Tani stood also, and came to take her adoptive daughter's hands in hers. "You have felt it as I have, your powers have grown since we left Naboo. You are still new to this all, but she will be able to help. She is strong with the Force in ways I am not. She will teach you," she smiled, "how to reach me from afar. So we can talk still."

Cas smiled. "So we can talk wherever you are?"

Tani nodded. "I also have decided to finally claim you as my Padawan. Which I haven't done since we arrived here and I apologize for it." She paused and her brow furrowed. "I didn't understand the implications of it before, but now I do." Her eyes locked onto Cas' again. "If I claim you as my Padawan, and you claim me as your Master, you will have power here. You will have the same power, the same influence, as Leia herself. This means that whatever happens, you will never be pushed aside, and everyone will always have to listen to you."

Cas computed the information, and immediately, something rose to the surface of her feelings. Fear. "But…what if what I tell them to do is dangerous, or wrong?"

Tani caressed her daughter's cheek again, pride seeping in her gaze. "I trust your judgment darling. I know that you will reach inside and know what is right. And Leia will teach you how to know."

Silence. Cas stared at her wall, although it was not the iron panels she could see. No, she could picture the command bridge of a ship she had never seen before. She could see herself standing there, people looking at her expectantly as she pondered on a decision. She was not sure she liked the idea of having responsibilities yet, but if Leia was there to help, then maybe…there was hope.

Tani smiled again. "You can feel it, don't you? That it is what you have to do?" Cas nodded. "Then say the words, and I will braid your hair."

Cas stared at her mother, eyes prickling with tears, remembering a time when she had been just a child, merely six years old, and Tani had sat beside her on her cot on Yavin IV, and her fingers had played in her hair as she herself said "I claim you as my Master of the Force. I will listen to your teachings, I will learn the ways of the Light, and I will surpass who I am now to become who I will be."

Tani bowed the head, and answered "And I claim you as my Padawan in the Force. I will teach you the ways of the Light, I will respect you, protect you, and help you surpass who you are now to become who you will be."

Then she moved behind Cas, placing most of her hair to the side and finding a longer strand than the others close to her right ear. She swiftly braided the hair there, binding it with a thin piece of leather that came from her own attire, and sealed it with the Force.

"This braid will come off only when you are to be Knighted. Until that day, it will serve as a reminder of who you are. And you are mine."

Cas whirled around, a toothy grin on her face that made her look ten years younger than her twenty-seven, and she hugged her mother.

"Thank you Master."

* * *

 _A/N: Here are the first two chapters. To be honest, I didn't at first expect Cas to become a Padawan. I made clear in the first instalment that her powers weren't fully developed, but after some research, I found out that it could have been explained by PTSD. She blocked out her powers because of what happened at the Temple. Also, it made sense that she'd need a 'promotion' to not be pushed aside when her mother left. So there you go! See you soon with the rest!_


	3. The flight

_A/N: Hello again readers! Thank you for all those you already sent their love to this story and to those you went back and read some of my earlier Star Wars work (I apologize per advance for these people: my English was appalling at that time and I am going to revise them all so it doesn't make my eyes bleed anymore... XD ). Here is the next chapter, and I hope you like it as well! :D_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **3\. The flight**

* * *

On the following day, the day the Skywalkers left D'Qar, Cas stood in front of her mirror, fingers playing with her braid as she tried for the umpteenth time to grasp the implications of what she and Tani had planned.

Before they left Naboo, before they joined the Resistance, Cas had had no wish to become a Jedi Knight _at all_. Her experience in the Temple had traumatized her to the point where she had almost shut herself entirely from the Force. But since then, she had managed to meditate, to see through her visions of the past to interpret them, and she had found herself wishing for more. More control, more peace, more…something.

She'd have never thought this day would come, but now, she was staring at her reflexion, and she liked was she was seeing.

It had been agreed that Luke, Tani and Niobé would leave quietly, without a fuss, while most of the base was still asleep. Their leaving – or 'cowardly escape' as some already called it – had been formally announced, but there was no need for grand gestures when the hour was dark. For the flight of three Force-sensitives was not a great day for the Resistance.

Cas let her hair down as she joined the small group gathered outside to see the family off. The same people who had been there during that informal dinner that had been so tiresome.

* * *

Poe stood next to Chewbacca and C-3PO, staring at Leia as she embraced her sister-in-law, then niece, her brother settling for a kiss on the hand before he unceremoniously boarded the shuttle they'd use to return to whatever planet he had chosen to live on.

Cas was grateful that Poe could not see her Jedi braid and that Rey, who stood on her right, did not yet know the meaning of it, for the secret needed to be kept until later that day. She intended to make quite the entrance in the com room.

Tani came to embrace her, and Cas clung to her like a new-born babe to its mother. Tani reached for her mind and soothed her fears, reminding her that they'd keep in contact through the Force, and moved on to say goodbye to Rey.

Cas saw the glint of something passing from Tani's hand to the scavenger's, but she pretended to have seen nothing, just as she pretended she did not see Poe and Niobé's tight embrace.

When the shuttle rose into the air and Tani's gentle Force-caress left Cas' cheek, it was as if a great weight had simultaneously left her shoulders and settled on them. She turned from the scene, grabbing Rey's hand to pull her inside and towards the infirmary.

* * *

Finn was still unconscious, but his constants were good, and he was no longer in any danger. Any day now, he'd wake up and be fit as he had been before being almost strangled to death. Cas shook herself off the reminder of that scene, and off the anger it evoked in her.

"What has my mother given you?" she asked Rey as soon as the door slid shut behind them both.

The younger girl's hazel eyes widened. "How did you-?"

"I saw it. What was it?"

Rey reached into her pocket and took a small watch-like device that emitted a soft blue glow. "She told me," by her tone, Cas understood that they had conversed silently, "that I could use it to follow them, in case they don't go back to Ahch-To. She wants me to force Master Skywalker to train me."

"She does?" Cas was surprised, but after thinking about it, not so much. Rey hadn't had the fifteen years of pre-training she had had, and her powers were even rougher than Cas'. The girl needed a teacher, and Leia could not teach her what she needed to know.

"Do you think I should do it?" Rey was looking at Finn's peaceful face, and Cas placed a hand on her arm.

"What do you _feel_ you have to do, Rey? That's the most important thing."

Rey stared at her dead-on, her own reflexion playing in Cas' purple orbs. "I…feel I should follow."

"Then do. General Organa won't be against it, I know it." It was a certainty that came out of nowhere, but a certainty all the same.

Rey smiled, an innocent, cute grin that made her look like a child she was no more, and she outstretched a hand to Cas. "Friends then?"

Cas chuckled, and shook her hand firmly. "Friends. Of course."

* * *

It was near midday when Cas strode inside the com room, hair pulled back as much as she could to display her Padawan braid. She could not bring herself to wear anything close to the boring tunics the Jedi wore as 'uniforms', but this at least was enough to show who she had become.

Leia was absent, as was C-3PO and R2-D2, as they were seeing Rey off – if she remembered correctly, the blue droid was to accompany her and Chewbacca to try and convince Luke to stop being stubborn. The chain of command was therefore assumed by Lieutenant Connix, who Cas knew a bit; Poe, who was talking with said Lieutenant; General Ematt, an old man who looked frail but who was all but; Major Brance, a nice piece of male specimen Cas had noticed upon her arrival on D'Qar; and Commander D'Acy, who was the one to notice her presence.

"Miss Andé? Can we help you?" the woman asked, and her question spread curiosity in the other Resistance members who then looked at Cas as well.

She steeled herself and tried to stand taller and straighter. This was it. She could not falter. "It's Padawan Andé, actually." She gestured to her braid, noticing only a couple of people's widened eyes. "My Master and I said our vows before she left with her husband and daughter."

There was no question as to who was her Master, although Cas could see that Poe and Kaydel were surprised to hear her say that instead of 'mother'. She jutted her chin up and waited for D'Acy's answer.

She didn't have to wait long. "So you are now a Jedi?"

"I am. I came here to warn you in advance, in case there are modifications to be made." Cas was enjoying this. D'Acy was now her subordinate, as were most of the people present, except General Amatt who was now her equal in rank. Everyone seemed to grasp the concept as she spoke next. "However, as I am relatively new to command, General Organa will tutor me in the art of leadership. You have nothing to fear from me. I promise that any decision I make will be thoroughly analysed first."

D'Acy moved aside, and Amatt stepped forward, as was the protocol when addressing someone of high rank. "Do you wish for new quarters then, Padawan Andé?" There wasn't an inch of disrespect in the old man's voice, and Cas realised that he must have seen the Empire's fall, and that he was probably one of those who had hoped for Luke Skywalker to be a Jedi back in the day.

She shook her head. "The quarters you've assigned me are perfectly adequate. I don't expect to be treated like a star that I am not. Jedi are humble, or so I was told," she tried the quip of humour, but everyone was still too stunned to laugh at it. "I will come back when General Organa is present. You may carry on with what you were doing."

She had no right to order Amatt around, but he still nodded calmly and turned back to his conversation with Major Brance.

* * *

Cas turned and noticed Poe's stunned stance, and the way he was eyeing the door as if aching to fly from the room. She smiled to herself and said "Commander Dameron! I'd like to talk to you alone, if you have time."

Even if he didn't have time, he was obligated to talk to her alone. It was kind of thrilling. And also a small revenge of the distress she had felt for days while witnessing him being cosy with Niobé.

He nodded once, and followed her out into the corridor.

"Can I help you with anything, ma'am?" he asked with teeth gritted, and Cas raised a brow.

"There's no need to be so formal with me now that we're out of there Poe," she said, being so bold as to gently touch his arm. "I'm still the same woman I was this morning." He looked at her with a look that translated his doubt, and she chuckled. "Ma braided my hair to make sure I was not pushed aside if anything important happened. I had no rank and was only admitted in the com room because I was her daughter. Now I'd have been no one, and she decided she didn't want that."

Poe remained silent for a second, no doubt processing what she had been saying, then smiled, something that Cas hadn't seen directed at her in days. "So you didn't trick us from day one, is that what you're saying?"

Cas was stunned and gasped. "How could you even think that?"

"Well, I don't know you that well, Padawan Andé," he said with that alluring smirk of his.

She was tempted to forget all about the previous days then. "You have been taking me on three dates so far, Commander."

"Were they dates though?"

She laughed. Damn she had missed him. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you if we could resume our piloting lessons. Now that I am a 'proper' Padawan, I'm expected to know how to pilot and now get killed."

He grinned. "I'd be delighted."

She grinned back, Niobé Skywalker and any jealousy Cas had felt long gone.


	4. Evacuation

_A/N: And I'm back! Thank you to all those you kept adding this story and favouriting it, it really makes me feel like a genuine writer! XD Hope you enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **4\. Evacuation**

* * *

Two weeks and five days later, Cas was sitting on her bed, meditating. Leia had told her that there really wasn't any good position for it, but that sitting crossed-legged helped. So far, Cas had managed to feel every living thing on D'Qar, and feel a couple Force-sensitives – although on a weaker level than them both – on neighbouring planets.

Today, she wanted desperately to reach her mother. She knew that, if Luke had gone back to Ahch-To, they'd have arrived by then, and Tani would be waiting for her 'call'.

It was hard, straining, and Cas felt herself tremble, head spinning even if she had her eyes closed. She could not, she would not.

" _Cas!_ "

She gasped, almost losing the connection as soon as it manifested. But someone else – her mother – caught the link and strengthened it, making it impossible for Cas to slip out unconsciously.

" _Ma?_ " she asked tentatively. " _I did it?_ "

She felt Tani's rush of affection, and something akin to laughter. " _No, darling, not quite. We both did it. I was reaching for you too and caught you halfway._ " No doubt she could feel Cas' disappointment, for she added " _But you are doing much better than I anticipated. How many lessons have Leia given you so far?_ "

Cas chuckled. " _In twenty days? Twenty-five._ "

" _Really?_ "

" _To be fair, I was quite eager in the beginning. She asked me to stop asking for two lessons per day when I started waking her up at night…_ "

" _Cas…_ " Tani was chastising, but it also was said in good humour. " _Have you had any visions recently?_ "

" _One very small. I don't think it was of any consequence. I just saw a planet from afar. It was fleeting._ "

" _Every vision you have is of consequence. Even if right now, you don't understand its significance_."

Cas didn't answer right away, and then she asked, soft as a breeze, " _How is life over there?_ "

Tani sighed. " _Not as bad as I thought. Luke has built a routine here, and apart from the rainstorms once a day, it's not so bad. It's an old Jedi Temple, and the Force is strong here. Rey will learn much from this place._ "

" _She has arrived?_ " The arrow of surprise flew off of Cas. The tiny scavenger had been quick!

" _I can sense her near, but no, she hasn't arrived yet. Niobé knows to expect her, though. She's already prepared a hut for her."_ Tani sent a clear image of stone-built huts to Cas, who was content for her comfortable beddings right then.

There was a silence, but both women just basked in the feeling of being linked for the first time in weeks.

And then Tani said, " _I have to leave you for now. Maintaining this link is tiring, and I don't want to exhaust myself. Continue to practice. Soon we'll be on even energy consumption._ " She paused, and Cas felt the ghost of a caress on her cheek. " _I love you my darling."_

Cas smiled. " _Bye Ma._ "

* * *

She only had time to shake herself off the connection when she noticed there was a loud sound blaring through the room. And every room of the base, for that matter.

An alarm, she soon realised.

Her door slid open at the same moment as she was jumping off her bed to see what it was about. Poe entered the room without ceremony, his droid BB-8 in tow. "Cas, we have to evacuate!"

Her purple eyes widened. "Why?"

"The First Order, they're coming after us. We only have an hour tops. We need to get everyone on transports and out of here!"

She nodded quickly and turned to gather her things. Thankfully, they consisted in material things that all fit in one bag. Once she was done, Poe flung the thing over his shoulder, and they both exited the room to hurry towards the com room.

Leia was already giving orders to everyone present, Connix was communicating with their transports and with the ships that'd take them on once off-planet, and Ematt was pulling Brance and D'Acy out with him, no doubt to supervise the evacuation.

"Leia!" Cas exclaimed, before catching herself, "I mean, General! What would you have me do?"

Leia looked at Poe first. "We need a distraction in case the First Order sends destroyers here." Then at Cas. "See him off and get a transport to the _Raddus_. Until I get there, make sure all our fighters are on the ready and transports correctly docked."

Both Cas and Poe nodded at her orders, and hurried out of the room and towards the transports. Poe's X-Wing was still on-site, of course, but he quickly conversed with a couple of pilots whose fighters were on-board the _Raddus_ before turning back to her.

"Breathe. You can do it."

How he knew she was petrified with fear, she did not know, but the fact remained that she was. She was to take responsibility for real lives that day, and she was not sure that she was ready.

" _Cas._ " She looked at him, and he was so close, so inviting… "You'll be fine. See you soon. Come on, buddy!" He hailed his droid, and with one last glance at Cas, he started towards his black fighter.

Cas let out a breath, and boarded the transport supposed to take her to the Mon Calamari ship.

* * *

"Padawan Andé, are you alright?" asked Major Brance not for the first time.

She nodded frantically, eyeing the screen that told her all fighters were ready for her orders. She could also see Poe's X-Wing standing by under their belly, and hoped that he wouldn't need to be the distraction that Leia has sensed.

Leia herself had arrived on deck, and was again taking charge of the whole fleet, for which Cas was thankful. Not that she had done badly, every pilot obeying her orders without any difficulty – even Jessika Pava, although they had met in less than hierarchic circumstances – but it had been far too stressful to see all these people look up at her and wait for her orders.

She also was grateful for Admirals Ematt and Akbar who both knew what to do and took charge when it was obvious she had no idea what to do. Major Brance had been the one to show her to the screens, and all in all, every person holding power in the Resistance was helping her adjust.

"Oh no…" she heard then, and the unmistakeable sound of a ship getting out of hyperspace echoed around the room. Or maybe it was because several First Order destroyers had suddenly appeared not far, looming over D'Qar like cats over a prey.

She clicked her com and switched it on. "Poe, we need that distraction I think."

" _No worries._ " She heard him steer his ship forward, and he cut the connection off, no doubt to connect with the leading enemy ship.

Cas eyed the screen and set her jaw, watching the last transports being boarded far too slowly to her taste. She spurred Connix forward, knowing the Lieutenant to be the last to leave the planet's grounds. "Come on," she kept breathing.

* * *

Poe was doing great, as usual, as his hailing to the destroyer permitted the fleet of bombers and fighters to prepare for an attack they maybe wouldn't need. The Dreadnought was far too threatening; Cas didn't like the look of it one bit. But at least, the lack of Force-shift told her that Kylo Ren, the brat, was not present.

On an impulse, and when she witnessed Poe's fighter springing towards the Dreadnought, Cas hurried to a command pod and sat in the seat, pushing three buttons that allowed her to plug herself to Poe's front camera. She wanted to see what he was seeing.

The man was too talented for words. He was single-handedly taking care of all the ship's surface canons, clearing the way for the bombers if Leia ever chose to launch the attack. Cas was watching his piloting as if he'd been a Jedi practicing with a lightsabre. She had watched her mother whirl around with her blue blade in hand, on Yavin IV, and this was almost the same. The awe was there, and the admiration as well.

If Cas hadn't known better, she'd have said that she was in love with the handsome Commander.

"Padawan Andé," Leia said as they watched Poe working his magic on the enemy's ship, "go to the hangar, and see to it that Finn is correctly helped to med-bay."

Cas wanted to question the order, to say that she'd rather watch the best pilot in the galaxy piss the First Order off, but the look in Leia's eyes told her that she had a very good reason for sending her away, and that it had something to do with Poe's current questioning of orders to come back to the _Raddus_.

She nodded, and hurried out of the deck room at the same time as Leia shouted an order through the com. She had never heard her so angry before.

* * *

The hangar was dangerously empty when Cas arrived. The transports remained, of course, but all the fighters and bombers had suddenly vanished, despite what she had thought Leia's orders had been.

Could it be that Poe had defied direct orders from his General?

"Padawan Andé!" came the call of Kaydel Ko Connix a second after she wondered if she couldn't get a hold of another holo-screen.

She turned to see the Lieutenant surrounded by what looked like medics, and a stretcher on which lay Finn, still wrapped in his bacta-suit. She smiled down at the dark-skinned boy, although he could not see her. "Let's move him somewhere more comfortable."

She was following the medics when Kaydel stopped her with a hand on her arm. "What's happening out there?"

They could both hear the unmistakeable sounds of explosions, of doom, of death, without being able to know if it was their own doom and death they were hearing, or the First Order's. "I fear I don't know, Lieutenant. Go over to the deck and you'll know."

Connix nodded, and hurried off while Cas sighed and followed Finn's body towards med-bay.

The former Stormtrooper looked as peaceful as he had those past few weeks, but Cas was still a bit worried about him. His body was entirely mended, had been for at least ten days by then, and still he had not stirred. She thought of Rey, of the girl's obvious affection for Finn, and hoped that she would not have got bad news to tell her next she saw her.

Suddenly, there was a jerk in the whole ship, and looking through the room's sole window, Cas saw that they had jumped to lightspeed. The fighters were back.

She looked one last time at Finn and ran out of the room. She didn't notice the sharp intake of breath behind her as she pushed through a maze of personnel towards the hangar.

* * *

Only a few ships were present, telling her all she had to know. They had sustained heavy losses. She felt saddened to see the small numbers of pilots who had returned, but selfishly looked around until she noticed Poe's black X-Wing. She let out a breath of relief, and hurried forward until she reached the bottom of the ladder placed there to help him down.

Poe opened his ship's cockpit and congratulated BB-8, who bleeped in answer. This made Poe turn and notice her. Apparently the droid had told his master that she was standing there. With a wide smile, the handsome roguish pilot slid down the ladder.

He was covered in soot and smelt like smoke, but Cas couldn't help herself.

Just like the day they had met, she grabbed his face and kissed him with all she had.

Unlike the day they had met though, Poe actually kissed her back. Quite eagerly as well. His arms slid around Cas at the same time as her tongue slid out seeking for his, and their embrace became more and more heated as the seconds ticked by. No doubt that it was quite embarrassing for anyone having to witness it, but neither cared, and soon, Poe found himself crowded against his own ship's ladder, Cas pressing herself against him as if she was drowning.

When finally they drew apart and sucked a deep breath, still standing too close to be proper, Poe grinned. "What was that for?"

Cas grinned back, touching her nose to his playfully. "Nice piloting, Commander."

He chuckled and pecked her lips one last time. "Is that our thing then? You kissing me when I've flown nicely?"

She tilted her head to the side. "Maybe. I'd like for it to be."

He was about to answer when BB-8's alarmed bleeps interrupted them. Poe's brow furrowed and he looked at his droid, repeating "What d'you mean 'Finn, naked, leaking bag'?"

Cas turned around and entangled herself from the pilot, and indeed they both saw Finn walking around, obviously distressed, his bacta-suit leaking all over the corridor. No one seemed to want to help him though.

Poe left her there and hurried to their friend's side, for which she was grateful. She followed just as Poe was offering the lad to go and change into some clothes, guessing he'd have many questions.

His first was "Where's Rey?" and that had Cas' heart constrict in her chest. The poor man had surely expected his friend to be there when he woke up, or maybe he had realised the Falcon was no longer there and understood it meant she was gone.

Anyway, she gently took his arm as Poe took the other one, and sighed "It's complicated" before they led him to a quieter room.

* * *

 _A/N2: I don't know about you readers, but I can't help myself. Poe is far too gorgeous. He needs a good snogging from time to time... XD_


	5. Disobedience

_A/N: Hi everyone! Sorry for the long wait between two updates, the website refused to upload my chapters for the longest time, it got frustrating... Anyway, to make up for it, there are two chapters up for you today! :D Enjoy!_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **5\. Disobedience**

* * *

 _Demoted?_

Poe was being _demoted_?

Cas was staring at Leia in awe. She had already been quite shocked when the General had slapped Poe across the face, but now that she was demoting him to Captain and taking all his privileges away from him, she was totally stunned.

Not that she could not comprehend. Once she and the handsome pilot had gone back to the deck and she had heard just how many losses they had sustained during Poe's stunt, she could understand how big a blow his disobedience had actually dealt the Resistance. She herself would have probably done the same thing as him, and faced the consequences.

So now Poe was being chastised like a kid in front of the whole chain of command, and despite everything he could say, Leia did not bulge. He had a point though: the Dreadnought had been a threat too big not to deal with. But the General had a bigger point yet: the Resistance was weak enough without the heavy losses of that day.

"Padawan Andé," Cas snapped off her daze and stared at Leia, "escort Captain Dameron back to his cabin if you please. And don't linger." At that little addition Cas raised a brow, but the toughened General had already turned away from the scene.

* * *

They were in a tight spot for sure. They had had to flee D'Qar in a hurry, meaning the _Raddus_ and other ships weren't fuelled up to their maximum capacity; and they had had to get out of hyperspace early to make sure they didn't burn too much fuel. From this point on, who knew what was going to happen…

Cas had gently taken Poe's arm to lead him away when there suddenly was a tug at the back of her mind. _Danger!_

She whirled around, eyes widening and searching for the source of her unease, when one, then two First Order destroyers appeared close to them, followed by a much bigger ship, black as night and threatening in a whole new level.

"That's Snoke's ship!" Poe exclaimed, and Leia seemed at a loss.

Cas then felt it, through the Force, the sudden and certain pulse of something powerful and just plainly _dark_ in the ship she was seeing. A force she had never felt before. It scared her.

"Cas," Leia called, "we might need your hand. Can you fire out cannons?" Her brown eyes were wide with fear, and Cas knew she was mirroring the look on her own face.

She nodded. "I can."

"Then go," Leia said, and Cas left the deck without a look back.

* * *

She had no idea what was going to happen, but it didn't feel right. She had overheard the officers on deck saying that they didn't have enough fuel for another jump at lightspeed, and even then, she knew something was wrong.

The First Order had followed them through hyperspace! That was supposed to be impossible, and yet they had done it!

Before reaching her destination, Cas watched through one of the ship's windows just as the three destroyers fired barrage shots on them, forcing the _Raddus_ to retreat further away to avoid the TIE fighters' attacks.

She was placing all her hope in Poe's piloting, knowing that he'd save them somehow, but just as she was about to enter the main cannoning room, the whole ship was shaken by an explosion that sent her flying.

Cas saw the floor come at her at great speed, and instinctively, she held out a hand. She yelped both in pain and in surprise when her fall stopped merely inches from the floor, and she hovered there until she released the power she hadn't known she had been gathering.

Sitting up, she stared at her hand as if seeing it for the first time. She had no idea what she had just been doing, but she had undeniably used the Force.

When she raised her gaze, she then realised something else. Part of the ship was on fire.

The hangar.

* * *

Cas could not remember running as fast as she was currently doing, but when she finally reached the corridor that'd lead her to the destroyed hangar, she stopped, sighing in relief when she saw Poe being helped up by Finn, BB-8 bleeping in fear next to them. At least he was in one piece.

 _Danger!_

Another tremor through the Force took her when she saw a single fighter fly by, of a different design than the usual TIE.

She hissed when she realised what she had been feeling. Or _who_ she had been feeling, more like.

Kylo Ren was there! He was attacking them. And he had killed his father in cold blood.

 _Leia!_

Cas left Poe and Finn behind, knowing them to be safe, whereas the General was all but.

She reached the deck, and went to slide the door open…

And the deck was blasted into oblivion. Cas watched, powerless, as the huge windows were blasted off and all people present were sucked into deep space, freezing and dying in the process. She watched as Leia closed her eyes and let herself be taken, and she screamed at the top of her lungs.

She may have hated the woman first time she met her, angry as she was that her mother had not told her everything about her past; but Leia had always been trusting her and helping her, and thanks to her teachings, she was already stronger with the Force.

Cas didn't think, didn't think that Leia would already be dead. She just couldn't leave her to hover in the void forever.

So she slid the door open and braced herself, looping her arm through the door's emergency handle. She screamed as space tried to take her, and screamed even louder when she outstretched her hand and called to the Force to give her Leia back.

She screamed and screamed and screamed until there was only the sound of her own pain and the ache shaking through her entire body. Slowly, she saw a small figure far from her get closer, quicker and quicker, and Leia's blue-clad form hovered to her, arm outstretched as if she too, unconsciously, was reaching.

Cas screamed one last time as she caught Leia's hand, and the door slid back closed just as she fell back, and fainted.

* * *

There was a gentle caress on Cas' cheek, or what she thought was her cheek.

She could not see anything apart from a big white room, or what looked like a room, and a blurry figure next to her that soon appeared to be…

" _Ma!"_

Tani's smile eclipsed Cas' fears, and the young woman let herself bask in the feeling of having her mother with her once more.

" _Are you really here?"_ she asked.

Tani smiled wider. " _We are communicating, yes. You are still unconscious, so I could summon an image of myself in your dreams."_ Her smile turned sad. " _You were reckless today, Cas._ "

" _I had to save her."_ It was a certainty, not a possibility.

" _And you did, but to great cost. You severely depleted your own energy by doing that untrained. It could have killed you."_

" _I didn't know what else to do. It was-"_

" _Instinctive, I know. You are still learning things with the Force, Cas. Some part of you is still locked away, and if you try to use that part of you, you will tire yourself out. Please promise you won't do anything like that ever again."_

Cas closed her eyes. " _I promise._ " Then she opened them again, and her purple orbs were full of tears. " _Did it make a difference? What I did?_ "

" _It did,"_ Tani smiled once more. " _Leia is alive, but unconscious just like you. Her Force-sensitivity saved her from the void, but only just. The_ Raddus _is safe for now, but they are going to need you."_ She caressed Cas' hair once again. " _You have to wake up, darling."_

" _Will we talk again soon?"_

" _Yes, we will. I promise._ " Tani leaned down and kissed Cas' brow…

And Cas woke up.


	6. Family ties

**_Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **6\. Family ties**

* * *

When she came to, Cas realised she had been taken to med bay. She recognized the layout of the room, and the gentle bleeps of the machines that checked if one was still alive.

Hers had started bleeping more steadily, and a medic soon stood next to her, smiling down at her. "How are you feeling, Padawan Andé?"

She tried to sit up, groaning under the sudden assault of a headache. "Not that bad. It's almost as if I had drunk too much last night."

The medic nodded and wrote something down on his pad. Then he leaned down and checked her pupils, and her constants, before nodding again. "I don't see anything wrong. I'd still advise you not to stand up too quickly. Remain sat up for at least another ten minutes. You did exert yourself quite badly after all." He smiled kindly and left her side.

That is when Cas noticed the second bed in the room. Someone was lying on it, a mask over their peaceful face. Leia.

Cas sighed in relief when she saw the steady movement of her chest as she breathed in and out, and suddenly longed to be sat next to the General and to hold her hand.

She tried to stand, but a sudden dizziness took over, and she had to lie back down.

Too quick.

She groaned in frustration at her own body's restrictions, and waited until the dizziness was gone.

* * *

She had been gently stroking Leia's hand for an hour, trying to reach her thoughts and send her encouragements, when the door to the room slid open and she heard a gasp.

"You're awake!"

Cas turned around, releasing Leia's hand as she saw Poe stride in, without BB-8, which was peculiar in itself. He was wearing a leather jacket instead of the orange fly-suit she had last seen him in, and seemed unscathed.

She smiled kindly at him as he sat opposite her, taking Leia's other hand in his.

Poe's eyes were filled with affection for the unconscious General, and when he looked at Cas several seconds later, she almost started under such a gaze. "Thank you. For saving her."

"I couldn't let her die. It was not an option," she answered calmly, looking away from his glistening dark eyes.

They remained silent for a moment still, until he said, almost too quiet to hear, "She's my aunt."

Cas' gaze snapped up at him in surprise. "Your aunt? What do you mean?"

Poe sighed. "I think Leia, and maybe your mother, are the only ones who know this," he looked at her and she nodded, understanding his silent plea for secrecy. "My mother, Shara Bey, wasn't born Shara Bey. She was born Kali Nabié, daughter to a Jedi Knight named Irri Nabié, and Anakin Skywalker."

Cas' purple eyes doubled in size as she heard this. "You're-"

"Related to Darth Vader, yes," he sighed again. "You can imagine why I don't advertise this." He paused, lost in his thoughts as he stared at Leia. "My mother never knew her parents, they were dead within hours of her birth. And yes, she always told me to consider Anakin Skywalker to have died that day as well, because it was the truth. She was raised by one of her mother's friends on Naboo, then on Alderaan. She joined the Rebellion and met my father there. She learnt who she was after the Battle of Endor, and it shocked her so much that she changed her name. Everyone then thought that Kali Nabié had died during a mission, and that Shara Bey had joined the Rebellion soon after, just as hundreds were doing."

"She was scarred by what she had learnt," Cas whispered, knowing that nothing could possibly be more difficult to grasp than the fact that you were the child of a mass-murderer.

Poe nodded sadly. "Yes, it tormented her until the end. She told me on her deathbed, and made me promise to tell only those I trusted the most. She didn't want it known."

Cas understood the underlying meaning behind his words: he trusted _her_. It moved her more than words could describe, and she reached over Leia's body to take his arm. His dark eyes met hers, and when she smiled at him, he smiled back, even if his had a sad undertone to it.

* * *

"So," Cas started again a moment later, "if Leia is your aunt, it means my mother is also." She smirked, "We are cousins then."

Poe chuckled sadly and looked at her. "I never thought of it like that. I prefer not to."

"But Niobé, on the other hand-"

"Is my cousin and one of my closest friends growing up." He smirked. "So you had no reason to be jealous."

Cas' eyes widened and she let out a yelp of surprise – and also of frustration, she had to admit. "I was _not_ jealous!"

Poe's smirk only strengthened. "Unfortunately for you, Padawan Andé, I know you a little better now, and you are a poor liar…" He winked at her, making her pout.

Damn him.

* * *

During the next hour or so, Poe and Cas discussed this and that, especially the current hell-hole the _Raddus_ was left in. Cas was surprised, but not overtly so, upon learning that they were burning fuel to remain at a good distance of the _Supremacy_ , while knowing that it was only a matter of time until the First Order could finally wipe the Resistance out.

She was a little more surprised when hearing that the new Commander-in-chief of the Resistance was a war-hero called Vice-Admiral Amalyn Holdo, and that she had made sure that Poe never stepped back into the com-room. She was surprised because, even if he had been demoted, Poe was still one of the best strategists on board, and it was slightly disturbing to think of him as not being part of any decision made on this ship.

"She won't refuse your presence, though," Poe added at one point.

Cas' brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"You weren't demoted, and saved the life of our beloved General. For all intents and purposes, you and Holdo still have the same powers over the rest of us."

She smirked at that, thinking of a way to piss this new leader off. She didn't like the way she had dismissed Poe. Anyone who did that to her handsome pilot deserved punition.

She didn't know where the 'her handsome pilot' had come from, but no matter.

"So let's say I wished to reinstate you, she'd have to suck it up?"

Poe chuckled, but darkly so. "I suppose she should, but it wouldn't serve our interests…" With a tender look towards Leia, he finally left her side and lead Cas back to her own bed, where they both sat away from possible prying ears.

* * *

There, he whispered to her about a plan he, Finn, and a mechanic called Rose had thought of. With Poe and Connix' help, the two of them, accompanied by BB-8, had managed to smuggle out of the ship and towards a mysterious planet where they'd find a master code-breaker who could help them get onto the _Supremacy_ and shut the device that helped the First Order to follow them through lightspeed.

"And what's going to happen if they succeed?" Cas asked, eyes darting to Leia's sleeping form, wondering what she'd say about such a reckless plan.

"If they succeed, we take control of the _Raddus_ and we jump to hyperspace before the First Order realises. And we'd be safe."

Cas thought very quickly. She could see the obvious quality to that plan – the First Order wouldn't know what hit them, and wouldn't be able to track them ever again; but she could also see its most blatant fault.

"Where would we jump to though? You told me we are burning fuel at an alarming rate, which means we won't be able to go wherever we want. We'll be limited in our choice. What if we run out of fuel and get stuck in some part of the galaxy where there aren't any Resistance followers?"

Poe shrank back on the bed, as if she had just slapped him. It was as if she had questioned his entire being, as if she had just questioned his loyalty to the Resistance.

He seemed shocked beyond belief.

So Cas decided to tone it down with a small smile that felt fake. "I trust you though. I know you wouldn't put us in danger like that. I apologize. I have a tendency to see all that is wrong for the moment…" She placed a hand on Poe's on top of the covers for good measure, and after painful seconds, he nodded calmly.

"Well then…until Finn and Rose come back, we should make sure you have a place secured on deck." He winked, although he didn't seem entirely in it, and exited the room.

Cas let out a breath. She raised her gaze to the ceiling and beyond, to the stars, praying whoever would listen in the Force that Poe wouldn't lead them to a dead-end…

* * *

 _A/N: So, as you have by now realised, I twisted Poe's family tree a bit. In my previous trilogies, I introduced a fellow Jedi Knight called Irri Nabié, who happened to be bestfriends with Obi-Wan and Anakin, and in love with the latter. After a night of drunkenness and stupidness, she got pregnant, but didn't know until she got in labour while on Polis Massa. She gave her daughter to Sabé, former handmaiden to Padmé, and left to get herself killed trying to get Vader back to the Light. Kali is seen in only one scene, on Endor, but I felt like, to fuse the two timelines together with the new lore, it could happen that she later changed her name and mothered our handsome and reckless pilot. Thoughts?_


	7. A mole in the system

_A/N: Aaaaaaand another chapter! Enjoy! :D_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **7\. A mole in the system**

* * *

Vice-Admiral Amalyn Holdo was a tall, purple-haired woman with gentle features but a steely personality that would have suited Tani quite well.

She welcomed Cas on deck with a smile that seemed genuine, but with a cautious gaze that told her everything she needed to know about the woman's views on her presence among the highest-ranking members left in the Resistance.

Cas had been surprised when Poe had told her that she could join the Admiralty on deck whenever she felt like it, and knowing the growing peril they were in, she hadn't wasted any more moments in her 'death-bed', had made sure her Padawan plait was still on display, and had strode in the com-room with her chin held high.

She had introduced herself to the new leader, and then had moved to study each and every screen in the room, trying to analyse and understand what she was seeing. So far, little made sense. She could see the fuel levels, being checked almost every minute; the head count of every person on board; and something that resembled the map of the _Raddus_ , with some sections of it being steadily shut down.

So Holdo was actually saving fuel by shutting down portions of the ship that were useless to them at present. That wasn't half-bad, as far as Cas' brain could compute.

* * *

"Padawan Andé?" came the call about half-an-hour after she had arrived on deck.

She turned around to see Holdo and her faithful D'Acy looking at her expectantly. She stood straight and held her ground. "Vice-Admiral?"

Holdo smiled again, something that looked almost like pride, although Cas didn't know what she could be proud of. "Have you had any contact with Master Kenobi recently?"

There was a silence. Cas didn't know how the tall woman could possibly know about a Jedi's inherent power to converse through great distances, but she thought that they were on the same side, and there was no twitch in the Force indicating that Holdo could possibly be a traitor.

So she smiled back. "This morning before I woke up. Although we did not discuss strategy. We merely talked about General Organa's health and recovery. And mine."

"But you would be able to contact her again, should the need arise?"

Cas tilted her head to the side. "Would there _be_ any need, Vice-Admiral?"

Holdo smiled wider and got closer, and while Cas stood her ground still, she couldn't help the unease that washed over her at such proximity. She had to crane her head to stare Holdo in the eye.

"I remember the Jedi's help during the fall of the Empire. I was there when Yavin IV was saved, and I was there when the second Death-Star was destroyed. I couldn't possibly deny that those victories were mainly down to Masters Skywalker and Kenobi. I therefore know that you are out best asset on board, and I'd consider it an honour if you put your powers to use to help us."

Cas stared at her for a moment still, trying to find any fault in what she had just heard. Anything that would bleed sarcasm or sufficiency. But instead, she just found a deep respect for her and the Order she now served, and a genuine need for her abilities.

So she couldn't help but reply "I'll help if I can."

Holdo smiled another bright smile, and turned back to D'Acy to continue their plotting.

* * *

The next hours were excruciatingly slow. Cas would stare at the fuel levels every once in a while, becoming increasingly uneasy as the deadline and their death-sentence got closer and closer still.

She was even more scared that when Vice-Admiral Holdo asked for her help, she'd be unable to deliver. The last time she had used the Force, she almost entirely depleted her life-force. She couldn't do it again, and she was slightly more scared to use any Force she might have anymore.

So she decided to settle in a chair and to try and make it spin. As simple as that.

The look of concentration on her face would have startled anyone, but the Resistance officers either were too busy to notice, or chose not to question her. At first, it was painful to force the chair to spin, so much so that she let out a groan of pain once or twice, but after a while, it started becoming easier. Cas could almost feel the atoms holding the chair together, and soon, she felt as if she could take it entirely apart if she so wished.

"Padawan Andé?" Cas raised her gaze and saw Major D'Acy staring down at her. "I apologize, but we need assistance."

Cas nodded and followed the older woman towards where her purple-haired superior was standing, chin in hand as she stared at a screen.

"You need my help, Vice-Admiral?"

Blue eyes settled on her. "Yes, Padawan Andé, if you may. Look here," she gestured at the screen. It showed a collection of escape-pods, several of which were being fuelled up. "I am wondering whether it is wise to fuel up all of our pods, or if only a few should be."

"You intend to abandon ship." It wasn't a question, for the answer was plain enough. But Cas was still surprised at this turn of event.

"There is a bigger chance of us getting out of here alive when the First Order has no idea we are evacuating. They'll keep firing at the _Raddus_ without looking for smaller ships." There was logic in this plan, Cas had to admit. "So, what do you think?"

She didn't have to think for long. "I think that as long as there is still enough fuel in the _Raddus_ to keep the pretence of her continuing her doomed flight, then we should use as many pods as we can."

Holdo nodded. "Sound strategy. Do it," she gestured one officer to give the order, before turning back to Cas. "Thank you."

"You're-you're welcome," Cas stuttered a bit. She was not used to being treated in such a way, to feel important in such a way. It was addictive and also enormously distressing. She was responsible for so many lives now…the decision she had just helped make could turn out badly if she hadn't chosen well…

She chose to ask someone else.

* * *

Poe was hanging to his comlink like a drowning man to a plank. It was therefore not a surprise when he took her call after just one bleep.

" _Cas?_ "

He sounded on edge. She could understand.

"Poe, Holdo is planning to abandon ship. We have a greater chance to escape if the First Order doesn't scan for smaller pods."

" _What?_ " He was even closer to anger by then. " _She is doing what?_ "

He shut to communication, and before Cas could try to understand what was going on, he had stormed into the room and walked straight to the Vice-Admiral to confront her.

D'Acy's eyes went to Cas as soon as Poe talked about a plan he was not supposed to know about, and she couldn't help but blush. That was a bad move…

But was a small treason this grave when _Captain_ Dameron had no way to force things to change?

It probably was…


	8. Mutiny

_A/N: Hello again! I'd like to thank again all of my readers, those leaving reviews or not (I see you anyway), and I hope that you will still enjoy this chapter!_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **8\. Mutiny**

* * *

As soon as Poe had been led out of the com-room, Vice-Admiral Holdo turned to Cas, a severe look on her face.

"Care to explain to me what just happened?"

Cas forced herself to look strong and resolute, even if a part of her wanted to cower in fear. She had betrayed their trust, she knew that, and for what? For a silly crush she had on a pilot. It was her through and through… "I informed Captain Dameron of our current situation."

"Because…?"

"Because I felt like he needed to be informed. I apologize if I have not correctly anticipated his reaction. I thought he'd want to help."

"Obviously not." Holdo looked at her with something strange in her gaze that contrasted with the way she had looked at her all day. It was almost judging. "Are you and Captain Dameron involved, Padawan Andé?"

Cas felt herself blush, although she had no reason to feel ashamed. Granted, she had kissed him in the middle of the hangar the day prior, and everyone must have been aware at that point, but it was none of their business.

Not that she knew what her relationship with Poe really was…

"My judgment concerning our proceedings have nothing to do with Poe, Vice-Admiral. My feelings are not interfering with my actions, I assure you." It was a lie, but she'd stick to it all the same. "I agree with your plan to evacuate, and will help where I can. I am just sorry that I misjudged his reaction."

There was a long silence during which Holdo held her gaze, seemingly pondering if she could trust Cas' words or not, until she turned back to the screens. "Very well, incident over."

Cas could have sighed in relief.

* * *

After a brief meditation – or what she intended to be meditation, during which she could not summon any particle of the peace she sought – Cas was assigned to checking the transports' general conditions, and to oversee the first phase of evacuation.

That she was being trusted with this truly meant that her little earlier speech had moved the Admiralty enough that she was given some responsibilities.

That, or Vice-Admiral Amalyn Holdo was a better liar than she had imagined, and was testing her.

All the same, she found herself in the secondary hangar, overseeing the conditions of each transport, nodding and checking things on a pad and giving orders around when she found something to say. One transport in particular didn't seem fit to fly, and she ordered the fuel it held to be redirected to another pod, or better still, to the other pods.

She had noticed Poe, C'ai and Lieutenant Connix standing not far from the entrance to the hangar, and when her curiosity was peaked, she approached them.

"What are you all planning?" she asked bluntly.

Poe turned to her, a smirk on his lips. "Mutiny."

Cas' purple eyes widened. "Muti-? Are you insane? You could be court-martialled for this!"

He rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't count on it, not if I manage to save us all. Then Holdo and her flock of idiotic followers will have to stare the truth in the face: their plan was stupid; mine was better."

Something itched Cas at the back of her mind. "Are you trying to prove yourself to her?"

His dark eyes narrowed. "No. I don't need to."

"Then it's a question of ego pure and simple." She tapped her pad to switch it off, and stared at him dead-on. In that moment, despite their difference in age, Cas felt as if she was older than Poe, as if she had matured quicker than him and was staring at a petulant child. It had never happened before. She had always looked upon him with respect, knowing who he was and what he'd done, but now…

He didn't answer, and seemed about to lose his temper, which would also have been a first, when another thought occurred to Cas.

She placed a hand on his arm, and while he still flinched away, she smiled kindly at him, now fully understanding why he was doing what he was doing. "You are blaming yourself, aren't you? For what happened with the Dreadnought?"

Poe didn't answer, and out of the corner of her eye, Cas saw the highest-ranking members of their Resistance approach the hangar.

* * *

Vice-Admiral Holdo was swift in asking Poe what he was doing there, eyeing Cas only a fraction of a second before his gun, and that of C'ai, Connix and a few others, were pulled and pointed at her, D'Acy, and their other followers.

Cas was staring at the scene, frozen. If she still stood next to Poe, she did not agree to his plan at all. It was far too dangerous to just wait for Finn and Rose to succeed – _if_ they succeeded – and to jump to an unknown location.

Apparently, Holdo got the message when she stared at her next. Poe sent Connix ahead of him to the com-room to relieve the other members of command of their post, and he turned to Cas. "Are you with me?"

She stared at Holdo instead of him, trying to convey how torn she felt, and when she saw an almost imperceptible nod, she looked at her handsome and stupid pilot, and nodded to him, tight-lipped and ashamed.

Poe took her hand, and pulled her forward.

Cas' mind was buzzing with thoughts as he pulled her towards the com room where Kaydel was waiting. She did not know what Poe would ask of her, she only knew that her conscience was telling her that whatever plan he had under his sleeve, it would end badly.

They passed a high-window and Cas made Poe stop. From there, she could see the _Supremacy_ , and an immense twitch in the Force made her stare at it with a blank look in her eyes. What was it that disturbed the balance in all things?

"Cas? What is it, we have to go!" Poe tried to pull her forward again.

Her purple eyes turned to him, and she gasped, filled with fear, "Rey is on that ship. And she's in danger."

Poe's dark eyes widened for a moment, then he pursed his lips. "I'm sure she'll be alright. Finn has her transmitter. He'll know if she's close. They'd arrived by now, which is why…"

Cas shook her head. "Which is why you want to go."

Poe stopped pulling at her, realising the struggle she was in. He faced her suddenly, and asked "Cas, if you had had the choice, would you have come with me? Or stayed with Holdo?" He paused, and his gaze turned harsh. "Would you have been _with_ me, or _against_ me?"

Cas shook her head, feeling tears prickle her eyes. "I could never be against you, Poe…"

She didn't have time to voice that she wasn't _with him_ either on this that he had grabbed her face and tenderly put his lips over hers in a gentle kiss that felt awfully like a thank you. Cas felt even more torn than before, because now, her stomach was fluttering and her heart was beating faster, and she knew that she could never be against that man.

Poe pulled away, and pulled her forward again. This time, she followed.

* * *

C-3PO was the only one that had remained behind, but then again, the cowardly droid was always in the wrong place at the wrong time, so it wasn't really surprising. Despite his initial rebuff at the mutiny that had taken place, he stayed with the group, especially when one of the sealed doors began to be attacked by some sort of laser that ate at the steel.

Poe moved to the command pod, and started conversing with someone that sounded like Finn, although his voice was far away.

Cas didn't know what to do, so she stared at the melting door, praying, perhaps, that it all didn't end as badly as she had foreseen.

Something at the back of her mind made her reach out for her mother for the first time in what felt like ages. It was eerily easier than the previous time she had tried to reach Tani, and when she did, she was assaulted by worry, and no little amount of anger.

She immediately realised that Tani was having a fight with her husband.

When she noticed Cas' presence, though, the anger subsided, and Cas could almost feel her mother's embrace. " _Cas, what is it? I can feel your fear! Has something happened?_ "

" _Ma, where is Rey?_ " She needed it voiced, needed to know that the younger woman was indeed in danger.

" _She left. Luke refused to train her after realising that she was linked in the Force with Ben._ " Cas' surprise seeped through their bond, and Tani felt it. " _Do not judge her. I am sure she will explain next time you see her_." She paused. " _Now, I can feel that you need to focus. Whatever is happening on your side is far too important to waste your time talking to me. Go. And do not fear anymore. You are strong._ "

Tani's voice faded at the same time as she heard Poe utter a desperate 'They didn't make it' that made dread fill her veins, and then, Cas witnessed the door being shoved aside by a surge of power, and a figure erupting in the ensuing smoke.

Poe fired at the figure twice, then realised who it was. " _Leia?!_ "

The General was up and about, but her face was severe, and she raised a blaster before firing a stunning shot at Poe, who fell backwards, knocked out.

Cas stared at her aunt in a daze, and when Leia looked at her, a smile forming on her lips, she felt like crying.

She approached, and sheepishly asked "Permission to hug my aunt, General?"

Leia smiled back. "Permission granted."


	9. Escape

_A/N: Hello everyone, and welcome to yet another chapter of this tale I've gotta spin. ;) There are two more chapters, so we'll see each other soon enough!_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **9\. Escape**

* * *

Leia had quickly been filled in by Holdo about the plan to flee the _Raddus_ and seek refuge onto the closest planet, which had once upon a time hosted a Rebel base. She had been helped into some regal clothes that made her look more like the princess she had been than anything else Cas had ever seen her wear.

All the while, she listened intently to the plan, just then understanding that both commanders had been planning this move since they had left D'Qar. She knew right then that the nagging feeling she had had that told her that this was a better plan than Poe's had been right.

Speaking of which, the handsome pilot had been placed on a stretcher awaiting orders to be brought onto one of the transports. Cas stood next to it, next to him, and was caressing his dark hair gently, pondering on the events of the day so far, wondering what fate had in store for them all still.

"Cas?" The young Padawan looked aside and met Leia's affectionate smile. She realised then how much their relationship had changed, from her hating the General whose existence she had not known about, to loving her as if she had been family. "I have something to ask of you."

Cas stood straighter and walked to her, chin up in determination. "Anything."

Leia smiled at her again, something akin to sadness in her eyes. "I'd like you to take command of one of the shuttles. If anything happens while en route, you are more than capable of righting any wrong." She paused. "I'm planning on having experienced pilots on each transport."

Cas looked back at Poe, whose peaceful features translated none of the current conflict. Then she looked back at Leia and nodded. "Aye General."

Leia smiled wider still. "Your mother would be proud, Padawan Andé."

* * *

Cas was given command over one shuttle in many. Nothing made it stand out: not the number of passengers – fifteen including herself –, not the number of supply boxes stashed at the back, and not the overall look of it. She sighed, taking in the amount of fuel, the integrity of the hull, the name and rank of pilot and co-pilot – Lieutenant and Private.

When she went to give her farewells to Leia, wishing it wasn't a goodbye – their plan was their last hope after all – she found Vice-Admiral Holdo and the General hovering over Poe's stretcher as he was being taken inside Leia's own shuttle.

"This one is trouble," the purple-haired woman said while placing a hand on Poe's cheek. "I like him."

Leia chuckled. "Me too."

Cas still waited, eavesdropping on the revelation that Holdo was staying behind to lure the enemy away, wishing to sacrifice herself for the greater good. It made her wish to explain her earlier actions, and she joined the two women just as they clasped hands. She stared at the brave and selfless commander, noticing the subtle resemblance to Leia's character. She smiled at her and bowed the head. "I am sorry for what happened here earlier, Admiral. I'll miss our conversations."

The taller woman smiled back and shook her head. "I know that your heart was torn between duty and love, Padawan Andé. There is nothing to forgive. I'll miss our conversations as well, and I know you will become a very wise and powerful Knight when you are ready." She bowed the head as well, and turned away to put some distance between the transports and herself.

Leia looked at Cas and placed a hand on her arm. "You'll be fine, Cas. I can feel it."

"I wish I had your confidence," she answered, but squeezed Leia's arm all the same before staring inside the shuttle behind her aunt. "Look after him for me."

"I will."

* * *

Cas was pleasantly surprised – and also no small amount of ashamed – to find that her Uncle, Sehr, had taken place inside her shuttle. Apparently, most of the supply boxes stashed behind him were books and holopads that needed saving.

The Gungan had dressed into a true scholar, and if she hadn't known it was him, she could have overlooked him. He had tied his long ears into some sort of bun at the back of his head, and was wearing a long black tunic with a brown belt hosting several utensils – pad, notebook and pencil. He was also wearing glasses, and was reading something when she noticed him.

Part of Cas was ashamed that she had forgotten about her Uncle during that entire debacle, that she had not spared one thought to the person who had hosted her and her mother for a decade.

She cleared her throat lightly after giving orders to take flight. The Gungan reluctantly looked up from his work, eyes widening when he saw her, but smiling all the same. "Cas! I am so glad to see you!"

She felt doubly ashamed then. "Uncle! It's good to see you as well! I am so sorry I haven't checked on you since we left D'Qar, I should have-"

"It's alright," he interrupted, "I know you had much on your mind. And I miss her too." His smile turned nostalgic, and Cas realised not for the first time that Sehr and Tani had truly been close friends during all that time. It made her wish she had a message to convey to him from her mother.

She made one up anyway, knowing it'd sound true. "She misses you too."

He nodded once before placing his long fingers briefly on her shoulder, and going back to his reading.

* * *

Cas' commanding didn't require much of her for the first fifteen minutes of their flight. The pilot – Exer was his name – did a marvellous job at remaining in line with the other shuttles, and the whole fleet progressed at a leisure pace, not having been noticed by the _Supremacy_ yet.

Not that Cas hoped they'd be.

Her Force-sensitivity told her that Rey was in distress, more so than before. She could feel the conflict in her, as well as no small part of anger and pain, but it was all so far away that she was able to push it to the back of her mind, still hoping that her young friend would come out of there alive.

There was a pulse of darkness surrounding Rey, and it wasn't emitting from Kylo Ren – whose aura she could feel close by, black streaked with light. Cas then remembered that the First Order's leader was supposedly a Sith, and she shuddered at the idea of him torturing poor and innocent Rey.

Suddenly, she was shoved inside a vision, and not a vision of herself, but of Rey. It felt like the Living Force, and told her of something that was happening right then. _Rey was kneeling, her hair down, fear and determination written all over her face. In front of her, Kylo Ren was looking down at her, his light-sabre in hand, visibly torn between killing the young Jedi and letting her live._

 _Cas gasped, and Kylo Ren looked over at where she was feeling herself stand. He didn't see her, but his brow furrowed, as if he had felt her Force-signature._ She shut herself from the connection, and all Hell got loose.

She felt a strong pull in the Force, stronger than anything she had ever experienced so far, and hurried to the pilots.

 _ **Danger!**_

"Swerve, now!" she yelled at Exer, and the pilot only had time to look at her in stunned curiosity before he did swerve right, and a beam of ionic plasma flew past them and destroyed the shuttle in front of them.

" _We are under attack!_ " yelled the com a second later. Exer was still staring at Cas in awe, and she understood why. She had just saved their lives, thanks to her abilities.

Meanwhile, she had no idea what to do. She could feel the _Supremacy_ firing other beams of plasma, intent on destroying their transports now that they knew where they were heading, and she thought that one of those shuttles being blown away into oblivion could be the one on which sat Leia…and Poe.

"Give me the wheel," she said, no ounce of interrogation in her words. So to speak, it wasn't a wheel, but the order was clear, and the co-pilot gave her seat, Exer being demoted to co-pilot himself. "Ask the others to put their seatbelts on."

* * *

The next minutes were spent in a daze of slaloming between transports and deadly-beams of light, letting her connection to the Force tell her where exactly she had to spin the shuttle about. She sent all the power into the rear engines, boosting them forward, but only her piloting and excellent judgment of distances made them able to reach the planet's atmosphere unscathed. In the middle of it all, she was mildly made aware that Holdo had used the _Raddus_ to destroy the _Supremacy_ , jumping to lightspeed right in front of it and severing Snoke's command ship in two. That had helped them gain a few well-needed seconds.

Only five shuttles had not been destroyed.

When the call came and she heard her aunt's voice, Cas sighed in relief, heart soaring in her chest. " _Crew call. State your commanding officers and surviving crew._ "

A couple shuttles called in first – Lieutenant Connix being one of them – before Cas took the com herself. "Padawan Andé, reporting fifteen surviving crewmembers."

A twitch in the Force told her that Leia was relieved as well, and she could almost picture her smile. " _Rendezvous in the base, Cas._ "

The com went dead, and she turned to Exer. "Land this baby, if you please. I need to calm down."

He nodded at her, obviously still impressed at the display that had saved all their lives, and took back the commands.

Cas was exhausted. But something told her that the day was not over yet…


	10. Crait

_A/N: Hey there! I know I'm here earlier than usual, but I just wanted to treat you today, so here comes. And I wanted to remind you all that next chapter will be the last until Episode IX is out...sometime in 2019. ;)_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **10\. Crait**

* * *

The planet they landed on reminded Cas painfully of something she had seen in Tani's mind when Han Solo had died – when she had broadcasted feelings and memories so strongly that Cas herself had seen it all pass before her eyes as if she had been there. The whole of the world was pure white, cold and uninviting, but once the shuttles landed, they moved the sheen of white to reveal a blood-red soil.

When checking the planet's specifics on the command screen, Cas learned that Crait was in fact covered in salt. And that the base they were going to hide in had once upon a time been a salt mine.

After checking each of her crewmembers – including her Uncle – disembarked safely, Cas exited the transport herself, erupting in a huge and rusty hangar. A noise akin to the chiming of bells caught her attention, and she noticed a creature not unlike a fox standing close to her, seemingly sniffing out her scent. It looked made of pure crystal.

" _Cas!_ "

She whirled around, purple eyes filling with relieved tears when she saw Poe – and Leia behind him – hurry to her. The pilot didn't waste any time in taking her in his arms, and she wrapped her own around him, relieved to see him well even if their current predicament was hardly safer than the one before. Over his shoulder, she saw Leia smile at them affectionately, and when Poe released her, Cas went to embrace the General.

"I was so scared something had happened to you…"

Leia entangled herself from the young woman's embrace and framed her face with her wrinkled hands. "We were even more scared when we heard that you had taken it upon yourself to pilot your own shuttle! Was it…?" She didn't finish, but Cas knew what she was silently asking.

She nodded. "I felt them fire on us in the Force, so I took command. Poe's teaching helped as well," she added with a smirk to the handsome pilot.

He was back to his ordinary roguish self, all trace of his crazed mutiny far behind. There must have been something to tell there as well.

Cas was half-tempted to ask when someone yelled " _Incoming!_ " and they had to hurry back to the entrance of the hangar.

A First Order shuttle was flying right their way, heading straight for the hangar's entrance. Leia quickly ordered for the blast doors to be lowered, and Cas grabbed a blaster gun, standing next to Poe and other soldiers while waiting for the ship to crash into them.

At its speed, there was no doubt that it'd actually manage to get through, and when the hull broke through the closing doors and the remnants of the shuttle slid over and over, further into the hangar, a mass of what remained of the Resistance's fighters was gathered to prepare for any kind of foe.

A window opened, and several soldiers started firing at it until two pairs of hands raised and someone yelled "Don't shoot, it's us, it's us!"

Cas' heart leaped in her chest as she recognized the voice, at the same time as Poe exclaimed "Finn, Rose!" before his brow furrowed and he added "Where's my droid?", which made Cas roll her eyes in mock exasperation.

She watched with a small smile as the man hurried towards where BB-8 was happily rolling down the ship's ramp, and the two being reunited was something far too cute to be forgotten. The relationship between the two was extremely peculiar, and there again, Cas felt like there was a story to be told.

* * *

The Resistance organized itself soon after the reunion – Finn embraced Cas tightly, which surprised her, but apparently the former Trooper had become another, warmer man during his and Rose's adventure, and it didn't displease her.

Lieutenant Connix and several others were assigned to the old communication devices, to try and reach possible Rebellion allies who would possibly come to their rescue.

It was becoming clearer by the minute that the First Order was going to come after them. There was no way that they'd stay there, in the ruins of their mother ship, and let the people who destroyed their fleet remain on the ground, safe and sound.

Supplies were counted and put in a location where they'd be protected from blasts and possible theft from the cute crystal foxes; and a team of soldiers was sent ahead in the tunnels to search for useful tools and quarters to sleep in.

Cas stood close to Leia all the while, and often, the older woman would take her arm, squeezing and smiling at her in reassurance as if everything was going to be fine. But both of them knew, felt, that it was not going to be the case.

Cas felt something strange within the Force, something that had started after her vision of Rey and Kylo Ren. There had been a massive twitch right after that, and now that she…'dug' into it, she could feel that the Light Side had become stronger, as if something dark had been annihilated. But at the same time, the Dark Side was pulsating with hate and anger and rage, all centred around one person. She felt that it was Kylo Ren, and her instinct in this was rarely wrong.

She ignored where Rey was currently, but she was alive, this was sure at least, and it relieved her greatly after the vision she had endured. After that, after the adrenaline from the escape flight had worn off, she had been secretly certain that the young girl had perished, and had felt a huge wave of relief wash over her when she'd felt her strong signature when she looked for it.

* * *

An hour after landing, however, another twitch in the Force made Cas stare blankly at the closed blast doors, until she muttered, too low for anyone but Leia to hear, "They're here."

Leia stared at her sadly, as if she, too, had felt it, and she turned away to order battalions around. Poe, Finn, Rose and a couple of remaining pilots, among which Exer, were sent to retrieve some old and battered land fighters; while another, bigger battalion, including Cas, was sent to the outside tranches to scout ahead and fight whatever was coming their way.

Cas put several different blasters at her belt, choosing those that looked the more powerful and less energy-consuming, and ordered a group of people to follow her outside. Crait's atmosphere smelt like blood, but it was only a side-effect of the salt covering it, making the scent more manageable somewhat.

After taking position at the right side of the blast doors, Cas used some binoculars to watch ahead, and was mildly surprised to see several machines that looked eerily like old AT-ATs walk their way, a First Order 'bat shuttle' – or that's what she called them anyway – flying ahead, obviously the commanding ship.

Something in the Force told her that Ren was standing in that shuttle, and it made her hiss in anger. They hadn't been so close to each other since he had destroyed the Temple and killed her fellow Padawans, and it made her skin crawl in disgust.

When the land-fighters exited the launching hangar – unfortunately situated right over the blast doors, which meant that all of the pilots landed rather violently on the salty ground – the AT-ATs halted their march and launched a series of TIE fighters from their bellies.

Cas cursed, wishing she'd been in her mother's old Jedi shuttle to blast those things off the skies, but apparently, small blaster guns seemed to do the trick, and when the TIE moved to target the land-fighters – which had targeted the huge battering ram heading for the doors – she couldn't help but lean over the tranches' side to follow them.

"Miss! I mean, Padawan Andé, what are you doing?" yelled one soldier as she climbed out of the hole and eyed the TIE fighters that seemed bent on hurting her friends – on hurting _Poe_.

* * *

 _A diversion._ They needed a diversion. They needed someone to anger their commanding officer enough that Poe and the others could destroy the ram, or run back to safety.

So she advanced over the salty ground, her feet drawing patterns that looked like bloody wounds. She went to stand facing the AT-ATs, some good ten yards in front of the remaining soldiers, ignoring their worried shouts and pleading that she comes back. Reaching in the Force, she searched for the spot of darkness she could feel in the shuttle overhead, and touched his soul with hers for the first time in forever.

Just to make him know she was there, she launched a quiet " _Hello, Ben_ " before retreating into herself and launching her whole energy into the AT-AT facing her. Outstretching her arms in front of her as if it'd help, she reached for the machine's wires, those holding its legs together, and pulled, pulled, pulled stronger even, not caring for what happened around her.

She screamed under the effort, all her muscles feeling strained and drained with what she was trying to accomplish, and Cas was not aware of the _Millenium Falcon_ flying overhead and blasting the remaining TIE fighters off the skies to save her skin. Her brow was sweating, her ears were ringing, but at last she felt it, felt those wires being pulled apart by her will, and she made a ripping gesture while the wires ahead of her effectively ripped apart from the metal beast's sides.

The AT-AT stumbled, its pilot trying to regain control, but after two seconds of intense groaning, it tilted forward, and crashed into the salt, catching on fire right after.

Cas sighed in relief and exhaustion at the same moment, and fell to her knees, then to her front, completely depleted of any vital energy. But she didn't care, at least, her friends had heeded her distraction and were safe, she could feel it.

So she welcomed the darkness that suddenly reached for her, and she smiled to herself as she faded, content that, at least, she had managed to save those she cared for…

* * *

 _A/N2: I want to address the fact that Cas still doesn't know that she actually_ has _been closer to Kylo Ren than she realises. She still doesn't know he was on Takodana the day she and her mother joined with the Resistance._


	11. Trial of Courage

_A/N: Hi everyone! So, this is it, the ending chapter of this new part of the By the moons saga! I hope you enjoyed the journey! This chapter gives us hope - I think - and makes us weep - me, at least. You'll be warned._

 _For those who are interested, we'll see each other around July or so, because there is a high chance that that Solo movie will inspire me at least a one-shot that will go extremely well with the first trilogy I wrote and that surrounded Tani Kenobi. You may read it first (although I am in the process of editing it, so you may as well wait for a bit)._

 _Anyway...let's go!_

* * *

 ** _Disclaimer:_** ** _I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters. I only own my OCs Cas Andé, Tani Kenobi, Niobé Skywalker and Sehr, as well as the plot surrounding them._**

* * *

 **11\. Trial of Courage**

* * *

It was becoming a habit, to lie there, surrounded by light and nothingness. Cas inwardly thought this a peaceful development to her current situation, if it didn't also mean that she was, in fact, alive.

She had faced an AT-AT and once again thrown her safety to the wind to safe her friends' skin. But more than that, she had faced the First Order with the consequences that it'd entail: Kylo Ren now knew she had survived the Temple, that she was alive and that she could, in fact, use the Force against his minions.

She had put herself in danger selflessly, to save a few.

It would have been unthinkable a few months prior. There, lying on her back and thinking about all things she'd done, Cas remembered the last day of bliss, when she had spent a sinful afternoon with a mechanic from Theed. She could laugh at her past stupidity.

How things had changed since then. She had left her home, Naboo; had discovered her mother's past; had met the Resistance and become part of it; she had become a Padawan in her own right; had found her strength in the Force; and she had destroyed an AT-AT that could have swallowed a hundred of her.

Someone chuckled close to her, and Cas felt like looking for the disturbance.

A deep voice she recognized only after said " _Yes, you have changed, Cas Andé, and I am surprised to see just how much._ "

Cas' purple eyes sought the person sharing her mind, and her gaze widened when she noticed Master Skywalker advancing on her, clad in a beige Jedi tunic with a long dark-blue overcoat. He looked dashing, and somehow younger than last she'd seen him. She thought he'd looked that way when she had been admitted to the Temple forever ago, but couldn't be sure.

What was sure was that he was in her head, and he was smirking at her.

She felt like sitting up, and he shook his head. " _Not yet, child, you have to rest first."_

" _How am I not dead?_ " she asked bluntly. " _I thought I'd die."_

" _I know you did,"_ he said while kneeling next to her. " _You are in-between. Your body hasn't yet decided if it'd die or not. But it soon will."_

Cas' brow furrowed. " _Is this the moment you ask me whether I want to live or not? Because I find it ironic that it's you who'd ask_."

The smirk made his grey-blue eyes twinkle. " _I was an idiot for so long I don't understand how I did not bore myself to death._ " He chuckled to himself, then his whole face became serious in the time of a blink. " _You were brave, Cas, when you faced that army. Very brave. It called to me, made me realise something."_

She didn't answer, merely blinked again when he reached to place a hand on her forehead, forcing her to close her eyes. She felt something tickling her from where he touched her, as if he was- " _Are you-?_ "

" _I am giving you some of my live-force, yes. Enough for you to wake up and help your friends get to safety. You deserve it."_ He removed his hand, and smiled this time, something tender and almost fatherly. " _I was wrong when I pushed you and Rey away. You are both far stronger than anyone else I could have trained. I am sorry."_

Cas felt herself go, and knew then that she was going to wake up and never see Master Skywalker again – and how she knew that she had no idea. " _Wait! What am I to do now?_ "

He smiled again. " _You'll figure it out._ " He paused, and before his figure became blurry for good, he added " _You have passed your Trial of Courage, Padawan Andé. I congratulate you._ "

Every faded.

* * *

Cas groaned, and opened her eyes, her ears being immediately attacked by loud noises of blasters and people running and something chiming.

She was being cradled against someone's chest, feeling the steady beating of their heart, and one long sniff made her realise it was Poe. Of course it was. She groaned again. "Don't hold me so tight, you idiot, you're going to crack one of my ribs…"

There was a gasp, and the handsome pilot's lovely dark eyes entered her sight, filled with worry and what suspiciously looked like tears. "I thought you were dead!"

"So did I, but I'm not…" She tried to watch her surroundings, and realised he had carried her back inside the hangar, which doors had been blasted into oblivion. "How are things?"

"Bad," he answered, still staring at her as if she'd disappear. "We're going to try and run for it."

Cas closed her eyes one second, feeling Master Skywalker's energy blaze into her steadily enough for her to feel his presence nearby – and Rey's also. "Master Luke?"

Poe sounded at a loss. "We've all seen him. It was surreal. He came to you and put his hand on your face and then he went outside. He's facing them now."

"He's buying us some time," Cas realised. "We need to move." She tried to sit up, but groaned again. "Captain, I think you'll have to carry me."

"Anything you require, as long as you don't do anything like _that_ ever again." He scooped her up as gently as he could, and Cas wrapped her arms around his neck, knowing for sure right then, that she was in love with him.

* * *

Master Luke's diversion gave the Resistance enough time to escape the main hangar and follow the cricketing of the crystal foxes that had apparently found another exit to the mines.

Leia, who had looked as relieved as Poe to see Cas alive, was certain that Rey was looking for them, as their coupled beacon blinked red. The young woman could feel Rey as well, knew that she wasn't far, and she was broadcasting far strongly than ever before.

When at last they reached an exit, and found it blocked by fallen rocks, Cas was the only one not to lose hope, knowing, feeling, that Rey was going to save them all.

The light of day made her blink tears away. When she saw Rey, with her arms soon wrapped around Finn, a smile appeared on her lips.

Poe merely tightened his grip on her, making her purple eyes seek his brown ones. "What?"

"You never looked _that_ happy to see _me_ …" he said with a teasing smile.

Unable to stop herself, Cas placed a gentle hand on his cheek before softly kissing his lips once, then twice. "I've always been _that_ happy to see you, I just have a different way of showing it…"

Poe kept his eyes closed for a second longer, and she realised that she had poured far more emotion into that kiss than ever before. It scared her, because she half-expected him to push her away, but his gaze was so affectionate it made her heart soar.

"Fine with me…"

* * *

The _Falcon_ was filled to the brim with famished and thirsty people, sometimes injured as well, and Chewbacca seemed mildly displeased to see his old ship so invaded.

Rey was surveying the boarding of all survivors, and after a quick hug, she directed Poe – and Cas in his arms – to Han's private cabin. She'd have to share with Leia, but she did not mind.

It was when her Knight in sooty armour placed her down that Cas felt it – the biggest rip in the Force she'd ever experienced. It tore at her heartstrings, at her brainstems, at her very core, and she clutched at her chest, thinking that she was, in fact, dying for good.

When she realised that what she felt was someone else fading, dying, and becoming one with the Force, she stared blankly at Poe, whose own gaze had darkened when noticing her discomfort.

"Master Luke is dead."

And whereas he no doubt saw in this the end of an era, the death of a hero, and the loss of hope, she thought only of one person.

And her next and last words for that day were "We need to go to my mother."

* * *

 _A/N: So, there we are... My dear Luke's dead. You can't imagine ho much I cried during that scene. I've been in love with that idiot for twenty years, damn him. Anyway, I preferred to end the story here, because for the previous instalment, I had made the mistake to go further and everything I'd guessed would happen didn't. Silly me. So, no diverging from canon until 2019! ;)_

 _See you then!_


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